ENGLAND RIOTS | TORIES REACH FOR THEIR GUNS

Plastic bullets are NEVER a solution

BY CLARA REILLY
Chairperson, Relatives for Justice and United Campaign Against Plastic Bullets

THE DEBATE following the riots in London and other cities in England has included a debate about possible weaponry that could be employed by police. The calls for the deployment of water cannon and plastic bullets have been loud and heated.
Muted tempering of these calls have been made. These have ranged from “because we have a different attitude to the culture of policing here” by Home Secretary Theresa May, to statements that plastic bullets are “controversial” in the North of Ireland.
Former PSNI Chief Constable and now ACPO (Association of Chief Police Officers) President Sir Hugh Orde has stated:
“I do not think it would be sensible in any way shape or form to deploy water cannon or baton rounds in London.”
British Prime Minister David Cameron said the police would have “whatever they need”, implying that they might use plastic bullets.
The Guardian newspaper has reported that “around 20 people have been killed” in the North of Ireland.

Here are the facts:-

• 17 people were killed
• 9 of those killed were children
• NONE of those killed were involved in rioting
• Often the use of plastic bullets was the actual cause of subsequent civil disturbance
• The police and British Army’s own rules governing the use of plastic bullets were broken in every instance
• MILLIONS of pounds in compensation have been paid by the state to those who suffered long-term, life-diminishing injuries as a result of the use of plastic bullets
• No member of the British Army, RUC or PSNI has ever been convicted for any of the above harmful actions.

Theresa May is correct that there is a different attitude to the culture of policing in England. This summer has proven that. As plastic bullets were used as a weapon of first resort in east and north Belfast, Ballyclare and Portadown against both unionists and nationalists by the PSNI, they were not on the policing agenda in London, Liverpool or Manchester. They have never been used in any civil disturbance, whether in Brixton or in Bradford, in years past.
Nor should they be.
Plastic bullets did nothing whatsoever to address the rioting in Ireland. They did not save lives or property. They made finding long-term solutions more difficult in those communities and undermined the position of the PSNI, its Chief Constable and the stated commitments to human rights policing.
We call on the Policing Board to reflect on these comments and this context and move now to remove plastic bullets from the PSNI armoury and introduce a ban on their use.
Plastic bullets are never a solution.

• Relatives for Justice is a human rights NGO working across the North of Ireland with people bereaved and injured during the conflict. Founded in 1991, the organisation’s work includes family support services, therapeutic interventions and legal and advocacy support.